Supplements are like saddles what works for one person may/may not work for someone else so I'll just help by giving some advice.
First, don't wait until the last minute to make your decision. Whatever product you decide to get, make sure you go out on a few rides before the big day to ensure it agrees with you and doesn't make you cramp or give you a case of the "craps". Nothings worse than being on a ride you've planned and trained weeks/months for and then have your new energy bar, gel, drink mix disagree with you.

Second bit of advice. Think of your supplements as a preventative measure not corrective. Nibble throughout the ride or take a bite at pre planned miles or at certain times. Keep the body fueled throughout the ride and don't wait until you're completely spent. I can't tell you how many times have I seen people wait until they've hit the wall and then decide to eat a powerbar or gel like they're some kind of miracle food.

I don't think I will hit the wall on this 50. I have done a 50 once before, but maybe not has hard as I plan to do this one. Good advice on trying the bars before the ride, as I have kind of a sensitive stomach.

The rides are 10, 25, 50, 65 (metric Century) and 100 miles that day. I wish they are were continuations of each route, but they are all different, so if I hit 50, I can't decide to continue on and do 65. So I decided to start in the middle. The 25 is not much more than I do every day.

If anyone in Northern VA is interested, here are the details of the ride.

Temperatures (hopefully cooler than mid-July) and that it's a supported ride with food/fluid stop(s) will make it much easier for you as you won't have to worry about self-SAG.

I believe you'll find that 50 miles isn't all that far after you've done it, but you'll want to refuel about midpoint. Nutrition starts before longer rides. For rides that start in the morning, I'll eat some oatmeal and a bagel at least an hour beforehand with cream cheese. During a ride of this length I'll carry a couple smaller Cliff bars, or a Nature Valley granola bar, or a Quaker "Oatmeal to Go" or a pair of their "Chewy" oatmeal bars. Dumping in nutrition with less than 10 miles to go doesn't do much, nor does dumping in fluids with less than 5 miles to go. Body cannot absorb it fast enough to do any good (during the ride).

Depending on weather . . . the heat . . . I can go through 1-2 water bottles in 25 miles (rarely just one). Take the two and plan to refill when you stop for a snack at midpoint. If you fill both with G2, water it down slightly to about 75-80% (3-4 parts G2 + 1 part water). This helps with fluid absorption in the stomach and small intestines. The technical term for how well you can absorb stomach content is "osmolarity" as absorption by your body is via osmosis through cell walls. If the osmolarity is too high, your body must add fluid to the stomach content for it to be absorbed, and while riding this can feel like a washing machine in the agitate cycle, plus dehydration symptoms, while your body is diluting stomach contents so they can be absorbed. Watering down the G2 slightly (doesn't take much), helps with faster absorption of it.

Bananas are a favorite as they have a good potassium content, which your muscles need to avoid cramping (normally not an issue below 60 miles or so). They're also a huge source of carbs and vitamin C. I also take a couple calcium fortified TUMs before the ride and may take a couple during it (don't consume too many in one day). Purpose is not so much as an antacid as it's for the calcium content, the lack of which is the most common cause of muscle cramps (deficiency in calcium, potassium or magnesium can cause cramping). It's also a symptom of dehydration.

Eat a good breakfast and you shouldn't need to bulk up much during a 50 miler; a small snack like a granola or oatmeal bar plus a banana at mid-point should be sufficient. Good luck and have fun on the ride!

I have a good recipe for a clean simple energy bar and it is simple to make. Let me know if you want the recipe.

I'm interested too, since you seem to have the recipe typed somewhere by now, why not post the whole thing here for everybody, or better yet offer it as a new thread on the Training & Nutrition forum (and drop us a link)?

They were good. Just finished them... so I'm going to whip up another batch tonight. I think I'm going to try tweaking the recipe by replacing some honey with some chocolate though... the honey was pretty strong in flavor.

Mith: Same basic recipe I use. Consider using peters peanut butter. Low sugar. More sugat brings out more honey flavor. Chocolate will work too but tends to make it a little stickier. I like to go 3/4 c to a cup in total of nuts/dried cherries/dried cranberries, etc. For added crunch, sometimes I like to mash up dried bananas and place on top once a little cool.

oats are instant quacker oats. Take the honey and peanut butter and head up in a sauce pot until smooth. Turn heat off. Add the oats and then the other stuff. Mix in the pot and then put it in the container.

Well, I hate to say I will probably not be riding my ride Saturday 10/1. Last week when I decided to do it, the weather was calling for High of 70, and sunny. Now it's 53, Windy, and rain. I told my wife I still plan to see if I can spin bike 25 on Saturday just for the heck of it.

FYI, I went out and rode the 50 course in the SUV the other day. I realized I would kill myself doing it. It was hills, hills, and more hills. There was pretty much not a flat area on the ride. I may have made it, but I think I know my limits, so I was going to drop back to the 25 miler, even though it was going to be tough with all the hills.

So, call me a wimp. But riding in 53 degrees with heavy winds and rain is not my idea of a fun ride.

Good news is, I've done 359 miles so far this month. Won't hit my 400 goal, but I lost a lot of days to bad weather around here.

PS, the recipe I got for the energy bars is terrible...okay, they are excellent, and I could eat the whole tray in one sitting. I have to find a way to make them a little less tasty

The motto of NASA is "Ad astra per aspera". To the stars through adversity. They would have never gotten to the moon if they gave up because something seemed like it would be "too hard" or "not fun". Get out there, soldier, get on your bike, and pound out those 50 miles!

The motto of NASA is "Ad astra per aspera". To the stars through adversity. They would have never gotten to the moon if they gave up because something seemed like it would be "too hard" or "not fun". Get out there, soldier, get on your bike, and pound out those 50 miles!

Cycling is a hard enough sport as it is for people of our stature and I think your quote is applicable in that we should push through and not give up because a ride will be too hard but I'm sorry I have to disagree with you about the OP "soldiering on". Cycling is supposed to be fun. If it becomes too much like work then why do it? What you are proposing, is for the OP to suffer through a ride in the cold and wet on a ride over rough terrain that he doesn't even want to do? That's why people quit the sport. They lose the motivation because they feel that they "have to" ride when they don't want to or their body is obviously telling them not to. But they go anyway, injuries never heal, motivation never recovers, they start to dread the ride, they start to make excuses not to go. next thing you know the bike is collecting dust. Trust me been there, done that.

Gforeman, it's your ride, ride it how you want. If you feel the ride's gonna suck because of the weather then pass on it. Keep it fun, keep it fresh but more importantly keep it going.

If you fill both with G2, water it down slightly to about 75-80% (3-4 parts G2 + 1 part water).

You know that G2 is the watered-down version of standard Gatorade, right? I, personally, wouldn't water it down any further. If your stomach can't handle G2, it's probably best to find an electrolyte replacement drink you can handle, rather than watering down G2 to the point where it's just bad-tasting tap water...

Other than that, I'd shoot for consuming the standard 250 calories/hour that most people recommend. G2 is around 45 calories per 20oz bottle, so I'd plan to supplement with an additional 180-200 or so calories/hour (assuming you drink one bottle per hour). For me, that would mean stuffing a couple of Clif bars in a jersey pocket just in case the food at the rest stations isn't very good.

I'm way to old to let people guilt me into something. I took his comment as encouragement, but again, if it's not fun, it's not worth doing. I will probably work out inside on the spinner, and if the weather clears up some, I will probably be out on the bike riding local. I'm just not going to commit myself to something I will regret.